110 MISCELLANEOUS EXHIBITION PLANTS. 



starting them. About eight weeks careful forcing in spring 

 is sufficient to bring them into flower. Great care is required 

 to regulate the opening of the flowers, so that they may 

 carry safely to the show, which must be within a few days 

 after they are fully expanded. The points of merit are: (1.) 

 Size and vigour of the plant; (2.) size, freshness, and number 

 of heads of flowers; and (3.) colour pure white, and petals of 

 good substance. 



HYACINTH. 



There is a great choice of good varieties among these, and 

 every competitor has his own particular fancy. A dozen of 

 fine varieties for exhibition, including those with blue, red, 

 white, and yellow flowers, are Alba maxima. Czar Peter, 

 Grandeur-a-Merveille, Ida, King of Blacks, King of Blues, 

 King of Yellows, Kohinoor, La Grandeur, Lord Macaulay, 

 Solfaterre, and Von Schiller. Only well-ripened firm bulbs 

 can produce first-rate exhibition flowers. They should be 

 potted in October to be in flower in April. Use five-inch pots, 

 well drained and filled with a rich compost of light loam, leaf- 

 mould, sand, and well-rotted manure, placing the bulb about 

 two-thirds into the soil. Water, and then plunge the pots in 

 ashes in the open air, covering them six inches deep. Remove 

 them to the greenhouse when about t'v^'o inches started, shading 

 slightly till the leaves become green, and then give air freely 

 to keep them sturdy. As soon as the flower-scapes appear 

 the plants should be regularly fed with weak liquid manure, 

 made from sheep-droppings and soot, and given an occasional 

 sprinkling of guano, or any good artificial manure, on the 

 surface of the soil, and watering it in. 



The spikes of flowers should be attended to as they grow, 

 and all pips put into place, so that the head may be even and 

 legular. The flower-stem should be so stout as to keep the 

 spike erect without the aid of a stake, but for safety in transit 

 to the show it is necessary to support each flower-spike with 

 a neat stake. The spikes should be carefully dressed, and 

 all pips placed in proper position by the use of two pointed 

 sticks before they are staged. The points of merit are : 



